Posted by David
Logan
04/26/2010 at 09:57 AM
The Diversity Symposium Dinner is a unique program that brings lawyers, judges, law profs, and law students together with minority high school and college students for an evening of discussion on important legal issues. The event is a key part of out “pipeline efforts,” exposing young people from underrepresented populations to the possibility of a career in the law. Last week’s program, our 7th, was sold out, with the largest number of high school attendees ever. Many thanks to Lydia Hanhardt, our Director of Diversity, and Lorraine Lalli, our Dean of Students, for...
Posted by David
Logan
04/19/2010 at 12:00 AM
One of the most important decisions by the Supreme Court of the United States so far this term is Padilla v. Kentucky, in which the Supreme Court ruled, 7-2, that a criminal defense attorney’s failure to advise a client about the immigration consequences of a guilty plea constitutes ineffective assistance of counsel. The Court reasoned that as our immigration laws have imposed increasingly harsh consequences for criminal convictions, defense counsel cannot hide behind the notion that deportation is merely a “collateral” consequence of a criminal conviction; rather, defense...
Posted by David
Logan
04/13/2010 at 12:00 AM
It is generally recognized that there are two student organizations that represent the pinnacle of accomplishment for law students, the law review and the moot court board. Both of these venerable institutions use rigorous screening to select membership from students in their second year, and then there is another round of vetting for selecting the leadership. Another key group, one that represents all students, is the Student Bar Association (SBA). Below is the “management” for the Roger Williams University Law Review, the Roger Williams Moot Court Board, and the...
Posted by David
Logan
04/09/2010 at 08:21 AM
The spring portion of the Women Who Lead series wrapped up for the year with two outstanding programs. The first, entitled “Law Graduates Making a Difference,” focused on women who have achieved much, despite being relatively early in their legal careers. The panelists were: Kim Ahern (‘09) who has already made her mark as a community activist, and who was an Obama delegate to the Democratic National Convention; Leah Donaldson (‘07), a litigator at the leading firm Motley Rice and President-elect of the RI Women’s Bar Association; Betty Anne Waters (‘98), whose pioneering work with DNA is...
Posted by David
Logan
04/05/2010 at 10:00 AM
RWU Law is deeply embedded in the social fabric of Rhode Island, and its faculty, students, and alums play a variety of important roles in shaping its future. For example, the January issue of Providence Monthly ran its “10 People Who Can Change the City” feature, and once again a member of the RWU Law family was featured…Kim Ahern (’09). Kim was a hugely successful student: Editor-in-Chief of the Roger Williams Law Review and President of the Alliance, the student group focused on LGBT issues. She also found the time to actively campaign for Barack Obama and got to serve as...
Posted by David
Logan
03/31/2010 at 10:00 AM
3L Ron Rose (Manlius, NY) and 2L J.P. Pruett (Harrisonburg, Va.) knew they had their work cut out for them; a team from mighty Duke stood between them and the championship in the twelfth annual Wechsler Moot Court Competition, the only national event to focus on substantive Criminal Law. Sponsored by the University of Buffalo Law School, this year’s competition involved issues arising under a Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act.
Among the law schools represented were the University of Georgia, the University of Wisconsin, the University of Maryland, the University of Kansas...
Posted by David
Logan
03/23/2010 at 12:00 AM
On Tuesday, February 23, the Roger Williams University School of Law conducted its second United States Supreme Court swearing-in ceremony.
A dozen grads from our earliest years (an applicant must have been admitted to practice for a period of at least three years in order to qualify) had a remarkable experience. A number of them got together the night before at a reception hosted by the D.C. Chapter of our Law Alumni Association, and had a chance to catch up with some of their many classmates who are working in the area, as well as chatting with U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse,...
Posted by David
Logan
03/18/2010 at 10:26 AM
We were delighted to learn that Providence Mayor David Cicilline has appointed RWU Law’s Jorge Elorza, an Associate Professor of Law, to the Housing Court. The Mayor lauded Jorge’s commitment to helping the poor among us find justice in the complex legal system. This will enable him to continue to blend his academic interest in housing issues (he teaches the survey course on Property and an elective on Housing Law and Policy) with the real world of how the law actually works in practice, a boon to both his students and litigants. Below is our press release and links to earlier...
Posted by David
Logan
03/12/2010 at 10:23 AM
A big part of success in law school, as in life, comes from the support and advice of others. At RWU Law we recognize the importance of mentorship in guiding students and helping them learn about not just success stories, but also strategies for overcoming obstacles, understanding strengths, and making smart decisions. Students find mentors in lots of places. For many, the most influential mentors are not people who were assigned as part of a program. Rather, they are folks who take the time to ask the right questions and serve as a sounding board. That...
Posted by David
Logan
03/08/2010 at 01:00 AM
Two of the junior members of our terrific faculty learned last week that they had been awarded tenure pursuant to a unanimous vote of the Law Faculty, the Dean, the Board of Directors, and the University President, Dr. Roy J. Nirschel.
Courtney Cahill is a national expert in the complex issues surrounding same sexuality and the law, using her skills as a close reader of texts, honed at Princeton, where she earned her PhD in Comparative Literature. Courtney was a stellar student at Yale Law School, where she served as Chief Essays Editor for the Yale Law Journal, and after graduation...
